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The first City of Dreams and Newcastle University learning seminar was held on 9th December 2019, providing insightful perspectives on young people, agency and poverty in the culture sector.

Attended by more than 60 people from the cultural, community and academic sectors, the seminar was hosted by Newcastle University at The Core in the Newcastle Helix developmenr. It featured four presentations from community, cultural and academic colleagues, followed by an open space discussion.

Find out more about the presentations

Read moreNewcastle University and City of Dreams seminar – poverty and agency

The Durham Commission on Creativity and Education was published in October this year.

City of Dreams is proud to be a case study.

The Durham Commission on Creativity and Education is a collaboration between Arts Council England and Durham University, aiming to identify ways in which creativity and creative thinking can play a part in the lives of children and young people. This wasn’t just about making a case for creativity in school, or commenting on decline in creative subjects in secondary education.

The Commission considered creativity in a broad context, both within and beyond education, trying to find out what works well and where there might be gaps to fill. City of Dreams was delighted to engage with the investigation team, take part in round table discussions and share some of our learning. Our case study drew on insights from Big Culture Conversations, from our experience of testing new ways to engage under25s, and from efforts to increase access to cultural participation by NewcastleGateshead Cultural Venues (NGCV) and partners.

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Read moreCity of Dreams in the Durham Commission

Engage Conference 2019 – Unlocking Culture: an entitlement for children and young people. Day 1: Ben Dickenson, Executive Producer, City of Dreams chairs discussion with Nick Hind and Bethan Kitchen, City of Dreams Champions, Martha Barrett, Enkuush Mergen, Sofia Cotrona of the National Youth Arts Advisory Group Scotland, and Gweni Llwyd, Freelance Creative Practitioner. Photo by: Silverbird Photography Emily Carey (www.silverbirdphotography.com)

Engage Conference 2019 – Unlocking Culture: an entitlement for children and young people. Day 1: Ben Dickenson interviews Kema Sikazwe. Photo by: Silverbird Photography Emily Carey (www.silverbirdphotography.com)

The Engage Conference took place in NewcastleGateshead in November 2019.

Inspired by City of Dreams mission, the conference explored the theme of “unlocking culture: an entitlement for all children and young people”

Established in 1989, Engage represents gallery and visual art professional across the UK and in 20 countries around the world. They bring organisations, artists, educators and freelancers together to learn from each other and develop the arts sector. They also help to make a strong case for access to resources for the arts, and for access to the arts by children and young people.

City of Dreams was delighted that Engage chose to hold their national conference in NewcastleGateshead in 2019, especially because they chose to do so because of the work we are doing in the city.

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Read moreCity of Dreams at the Engage Conference 2019

The 2019 Lumiere festival lit up Durham this autumn.

On Friday 15th November festival organisers hosted the Lumiere Conference, with City of Dreams deligthed to be among the speakers.

Organised by Artichoke, in partnership with the Learning Curve Group the 2019 Lumiere Conference took inspiration from the findings of the Durham Commission on Creativity in Education. Over the course of an enlightening and motivating day the conference played host to special panels, debates, key note speeches and breakout workshops exploring the importance of creativity in children and young people’s lives and education.

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Read moreCity of Dreams at the Lumiere Conference 2019

Image from X-Culture event, February 27th 2019. (Photo copyright Victoria Wai)

A week of special events showcasing opportunities for young people is coming to Tyneside – 18th to 22nd November

Which industry is worth £100 billion to the UK economy?

Which industry employs 3 million people across the country?

Which industry has jobs in film, radio, TV, drama, visual art, gallery management, heritage, archeology, music, dance as well as finance, admin, marketing, design, building managenment, joinery, and even technical and digitial roles?

Yes! The creative industry. And here on Tyneside, we are making more new creative sector jobs and careers than almost anywhere. We can proudly boast the fastest growing creative economy in the country. So why should young people consider a creative industry job?

read the full blog post here

Read moreDiscover! Creative Careers on Tyneside

Why should you support young people to get creative? How can it help their confidence, grow their skills and develop new careers?

In this new blog Kate Murphy explains why she’s supporting Creative Careers week 2019 – taking place 18-22nd November – and tells her story of getting into creativity with The Suggestibles.

Creativity? As Kate says, “we’d be fools to underestimate it”.

An online search of ‘things to do in Newcastle’ brought me to improvisation at 17 years old. The page I opened in the second step of this search told me of a comedy show at The Cumberland Arms in Byker, and it was performed by a local group called The Suggestibles. “They ask the audience for suggestions as they perform,” I told my drama teacher at school the next day, revelling in its simplicity. “And then that’s what they do onstage: what the audience have said. They make it up as they go along.” It was so simple that it bordered on dangerous. Not only were The Suggestibles inviting a roomful of beer-moustached adults to be their co-writers (daring enough already), it was also their only plan for the show. There was no back-up. No rehearsal. No script. They make it up as they go along. That was it.

Read the full blog post

Read moreCreative Careers – supporting the next generation

The North East’s only free culture crawl for 12-17year olds returns to Tyneside on 17th and 18th May – and with twice the fun! 

Twi-Lates brings together some of the region’s most iconic venues to put on two nights of special events for teenagers in NewcastleGateshead. From big budget films, to silent discos, improvisation games, music workshops, animation making and mass participation dancing, Twi-Lates is packed with events designed for young people. 

The events take place during “twilight”, between 4pm and 7pm, when teenagers tell us they are able to come along without the rest of life getting in the way. Twi-Lates runs on the 17th and 18th May, immediately before The Late Shows – NewcastleGateshead’s award winning late-night culture crawl involving over 60 venues. And, because we know the cost of getting stuck into culture can exclude some young people, every Twi-Late event is completely free.

Read the full post

Read moreA free evening of culture for teenagers? We’ve got 2!

Image from X-Culture event, February 27th 2019. (Photo copyright Victoria Wai)

Image from X-Culture event, 27th February 2019. (Photo copyright Victoria Wai.)

Image from X-Culture event, 27th February 2019. (Phot copyright Victoria Wai.)

Be bold and reap the rewards of a new approach to audience development, argues Laura Rothwell, founder of CRYSTLSD and interim Marketing Director at Tyneside Cinema.

In this blog Laura explains why and how cultural venue marketing teams can do things differently, sharing learning from the recent X-Culture pilot and publishing the full project report.

Over the past few months CRYSTLSD has been leading an innovative programme called X-Culture, testing new approaches to engaging young people in cultural, creative and heritage offers.  

At the City of Dreams launch event in September 2018, we outlined how, through a small pilot project, we would attempt to demonstrate how relationships with a younger audience could be rethought. 

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Read moreIt’s time to be bold, it’s time for X-Culture

Our young hosts performing their poem “what is culture?”

Join us on March 7th for a completely new kind of event, giving a powerful insight into growing up on Tyneside.

Our City Our Story is happening for the first time on March 7th 2019. Organised by City of Dreams, and hosted by Live Theatre, this unique event showcases stories made by more than 11,000 children and young people living in NewcastleGateshead.

Running 1pm to 6pm, and featuring work from more than 50 collaborators, this is an afternoon full of film, theatre, music, poetry, animation, art, virtual reality, photography, alternative city maps, interactive exhibits, and more.  All brought to a close by a panel discussion hosted by comedian Mark Thomas.

Our City Our Story is a new kind of event, a platform for young people to tell their own stories in the ways they want them told.  

read the full blog post

Read more11,000 voices – this is Our City, this Our Story

In our first blog of 2019, Eclipse Enabler Degna Stone argues there is no “one size fits all” solution to under-representation of black people in the cultural sector. 

Access, money, governance, workforce development, all need urgent attention from the leaders of our creative institutions. 

I’m an Enabler. An odd title but one that perfectly sums up what my job entails. Enabling artists to build relationships that will help them to create sustainable careers in the arts. I do this through Slate: Black · Arts · World, an ambitious cross-artform development programme run by Eclipse to support Black* artists across the north of England by increasing access to local, national and international networks.

Read the full blog post

Read moreA workforce that represents the changing face of Britain? We’re still playing catch up.

In November City of Dreams brought together arts, culture and heritage organisations to discuss how we can best support children and young people’s progression over the next decade.

Here we share some of the presentations, films and ideas shared at the event, alongside examples of pledges made by our guests to improve future progression opportunities for under25s.

More than 30 organisations attended the seminar, hosted by Sage Gateshead on November 27th. These ranged from large cultural and heritage institutions, to statutory providers of creative activities, to youth sector partners, education services and independent arts organisations.  “It’s not often that we get the chance to come together and talk in this open and honest way”, commented an attendee from a cultural venue in Newcastle. “There’s so much good stuff happening”, said a colleague from a statutory education provider, “it’s so useful to hear what everyone is doing”.

“I’m inspired to do more and better”, added the learning director of a local science and heritage charity. And what was it that inspired them so much?

Read the full blog post.

Read moreTaking on the progression challenge – presentations and pledges

City of Dreams believes NewcastleGateshead can earn a reputation as the best place to be young. We can only make this ambition a reality if children and young have a powerful voice in our city.

Earlier this year Unfolding Theatre invented an exciting new way to give young people a powerful say in the future of our society. It is called MultiVerse Arcade, and over 3000 people took part.

We’re delighted that Artistic Director Annie Rigby, and Associate Artist Gary Lydon, have taken time out to tell us all about it.

Multiverse Arcade, an installation made with and for young people, welcomed 16,701 people through its doors.

Multiverse Arcade was created in collaboration with 51 young people at Young Writers’ City at Excelsior Academy (run by New Writing North) and Queen’s Hall Youth Theatre in Hexham. They worked with us at Unfolding Theatre to explore their feelings, concerns and dreams for the future. The piece they helped create was presented as part of the Great Exhibition of the North.

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Read moreMultiverse Arcade – young people making waves

City of Dreams Make

City of Dreams is working with young people on Tyneside to explore new ways for cultural venues to communicate with under25s.

During the 2018 Big Culture Conversation we spoke to nearly 1000 under25s on Tyneside. 9-in-10 of them could identifs cultural organisations in NewcastleGateshead by their logo or the facia of their buildings. But only 1-in-5 knew what was on offer for them in those venues. The vast majority did not read venue brochures, visit organisation’s websites, or follow them on social media.

As for venues promoting via young people’s peer-to-peer communication tools, well, that was an absolute no-no. Worse still, around 66% of those taking part in the Conversation did not think they “belonged” in cultural venues. Whilst nearly 8-in-10 said the use of organisational brands, or artform terms, on promotional material made them feel less confident about engaging.

Read full blog post

Read moreCommunicating with children and young people – new report, new ideas

City of Dreams is bringing arts, culture and heritage organisations together on 27th November to discuss how we can best support children and young people’s progression over the next decade.

Places are filling fast. Don’t miss out!

Ahead of the seminar here are some thoughts about progression from our Executive Producer, Ben Dickenson.

When City of Dreams launched in September we made the bold claim that NewcastleGateshead can be the best place to be young. Bold, but not idle and not plucked from a marketer’s handbook. This ambition was set by our Champions network of over 50 organisations, and our belief that it can be achieved was affirmed during our Big Culture Conversation with nearly 1000 under25s across the city.

Read the full blog post.

Read moreAgents of humanity – taking on the progression challenge

Our young hosts performing their poem “what is culture?”

Under 25? Live in Gateshead or Newcastle?

Want to tell your own story? Want to be heard by those in charge of our city?

Get involved with the Our City Our Story event.

Our City Our Story is a special annual event, happening for the first time on March 7th 2019. It is a powerful way for young people to share their stories and shape the future. It is a chance to show the world what it’s really like growing up on Tyneside, and to have those stories heard by people who make the big decisions about our city.

read the full blog post

Read moreIt’s your city, it’s your story – tell it!

young people launching City of Dreams

A call out from the City of Dreams Young Champions Board

Make your voice heard – take part in one of our consultation workshops

City of Dreams is a 10year mission for all children and young people in Newcastle and Gateshead. We want our city to be know as the best place to be young.

We’ve brought together museums, galleries, cinemas, music and dance venues, theatres, science centres, a centre for children’s books, and lots of other organisations that do creative things with under25s. Also involved are charities, schools, universities, councils, health services, transport, businesses, and more.  We have exciting plans to help everyone under25 in our city take part in creative activity – that’s 165,000 people, every year, till 2028. Plans to support children and young people grow skills, confidence and talent. Plans to work with young people so they have a strong voice in decisions about our city.

In fact, listening to young people is one of the most important things we will be doing. And that is where you come in!

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Read moreThe Big Culture Conversation 2019 – we want to talk!

Photo credit: Janina Sabaliauskaite

learn the tools for a career in producing with Newcastle’s award winning puppetry and alternative theatre organisation

by Kerrin Tatman, Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Moving Parts

Engaging young people in the work we do at Moving Parts Arts is essential to the growth of the North East visual theatre scene and to develop a pool of upcoming producers and arts administrators. There are few avenues in the North East region for young people to enter the world of producing, programming and event organisation and we are thrilled to have partnered with City of Dreams to start creating real opportunities for young people to enter this rewarding field of work.

Read the full blog post

Read moreAgainst the odds and bordering on crazy? Maybe. But yes YOU CAN!

By Laura Rothwell

Founder of arts and culture marketing agency CRYSTLSD and Interim Director of Marketing at Tyneside Cinema

Over the next six months CRYSTLSD will be leading an innovative City of Dreams pilot programme, testing new approaches to engaging young people in cultural, creative and heritage offers.    

This blog – the first in a series by CRYSTSD founder, Laura Rothwell – recaps the bold assertions underpinning this programme, initially presented at the City of Dreams launch event in September 2018. Laura challenges the received wisdom of marketing approaches often employed by cultural and heritage organisations. She calls for a more intelligent segmentation of ‘younger audiences’, and outlines how the CRYSTLSD pilot programme with City of Dreams will test a relationship-based engagement model that can reshape the way our marketing teams work and transform how our sectors communicate with young people.

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Read moreLet’s talk about “younger audiences”

We launched our 10 year mission for all children and young people in NewcastleGateshead on 18th September 2018.

Attended by over 220 invited guests, the two launch events were hosted by Gateshead Youth Assembly and Newcastle Youth Council.

Among our guests were supporters from Newcastle City Council, Gateshead Council, Newcastle University, North East England Chamber of Commerce, Gillian Dickinson Trust, the Community Foundation of Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, The Prince’s Trust, BBC Newcastle, Curious Arts, VInspired, Esh Group, Moving Parts: Newcastle Puppetry Festival, and more.

Read the full post and see all the videos

Read moreCity of Dreams – our supporters and partners

We launched our 10 year mission for all children and young people in NewcastleGateshead on 18th September 2018.

Attended by over 220 invited guests, the two launch events were hosted by Gateshead Youth Assembly and Newcastle Youth Council.

You told us you wanted footage of our hosts performing their fantastic “What Is Culture?” poem, and to share the inspirational words of broadcaster Kirsty Lang, and NewcastleGateshead Cultural Venues chair Iain Watson. You ask, we deliver!

Read the full post and see all the videos

Read moreCity of Dreams launch – exclusive video footage

We launched our 10 year mission for all children and young people in NewcastleGateshead at two special events on 18th September 2018.

Taking place at Northern Stage, and attended by over 220 invited guests, the events were hosted by Gateshead Youth Assembly and Newcastle Youth Council. Speakers included broadcaster Kirsty Lang, local councillors, the chair of NewcastleGateshead Cultural Venues, and representatives of City of Dreams research, business, charity and cultural partners.  

Read the full post and see all the pictures

Read moreCity of Dreams launch – in pictures